The invention relates to a composition comprising at least one free glycine source selected from the group of the free amino acid glycine, physiologically acceptable salts of the free amino acid glycine, dipeptides having at least one glycine unit, tripeptides having at least one glycine unit and tetrapeptides having at least one glycine unit for use in preventing an allergy in a human or other mammal.
Allergy is a burdensome disease that is increasingly present in the world. Allergy against allergens can develop from day 1 after birth until adult age. In particular food allergy starts early in life when the infant is exposed to new food allergens. The atopic march is still believed to start with food allergy where later in life airway allergens become relevant inducing allergic rhinitis and asthma.
The typical treatment strategy for (food)-allergy is avoidance of the allergen. Avoidance will dissolve the allergen induced symptoms without inducing tolerance.
The induction of tolerance against food proteins is a naturally occurring non-pathogenic immune-response that, when not induced, can give rise to allergies. Although many processes involved in the induction of tolerance are discovered, it is still unknown why immunological tolerance is not always induced.
EP 0855 181 A2 relates to the use of glycine, L-alanine and/or L-serine, in free amino acid form and/or in physiologically acceptable salt form in the preparation of a medicament or nutritional formulation with immune-modulating effect. Also treatment of allergic inflammatory reactions is described, i.e. treatment of manifest symptoms of an allergy in an allergic patient. The prevention of an allergy is not described in this document, and in particular it is not disclosed or suggested to use glycine to induce immunological tolerance to the allergens. The inhibition of inflammation is clearly different from the presently claimed prevention of allergy or induction of immunological tolerance because the induction of tolerance (the prevention of allergy) makes the use of anti-inflammatory agents unnecessary. The presently claimed solution to the problem of immunological tolerance induction would thus prevent the need to look for anti-inflammatory agents.
EP 2 061 346 A1 discloses the use of a nutritional composition comprising at least 99 wt % free amino acids based on total protein of the composition for decreasing sensitivity of a subject to an allergen. That is, in EP 2 061 346 the symptoms of allergy and infections are decreased by decreasing sensitivity to said allergen, even though the underlying allergy remains. EP 2 061 346 provides an allergic person with a nutritional composition free of potential allergens. The presently claimed composition has been found to actually prevent allergy, i.e. inducing or improving immunological tolerance against an allergen.
US 2002/106436 A1 similarly relates to an infant formula powder for infants with milk allergy, comprising free amino acids as protein source to prevent allergic reactions against milk protein. Glutamine is present in 2-3 g/1000 kcal of the composition supposedly beneficial for healing to the infant's damaged gut and normal growth. There is no mentioning of tolerance induction to (milk) proteins in this document, nor of the prevention of the allergy itself.
There remains a need for compositions useful to actually reduce the risk of a human or other mammal to develop an allergy, such as by inducing or improving an immunological tolerance against allergens in allergic subjects.